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Alumnus Named President of NACCHO Ph.D. in Health Services graduate leads national health organization.  Dr. Bruce Dart “I am deeply honored to have this opportunity to serve our nation’s local health departments as president of the board of NACCHO,” said Dart. “This is a time of both great struggle and opportunity for health departments across the country. As we come together to address community health issues, the efforts of all who comprise NACCHO will help us on the local level truly make a difference.” A Career Devoted to Public Health A public health practitioner since 1980, Dart has dedicated his career to improving environmental and social conditions that affect the public’s health. “From the lab, to health inspection, to epidemiology, to managing programs and grants—every position I’ve held has given me an opportunity to grow and develop personally and professionally,” says Dart. Since 2001, Dr. Dart has served 275,000 Nebraskans as the health director of Lincoln and Lancaster counties. He previously served as the director of the Independence (Mo.) Health Department and the Grand Island / Hall County (Neb.) Health Department. Prior to his health director positions, Dart worked in the environmental health, childhood lead poisoning prevention and epidemiology programs at the Douglas County (Neb.) Health Department.
Dart’s election comes at a time when health care reform is a top political issue and preventing the spread of diseases like H1N1 and AIDS is a worldwide initiative. “This is a key time to be in a leadership position in health care,” says Dart. “One of my goals is to make public health more visible. The best outcome is that everyone knows the importance of public health and embraces it.” Dart’s Walden Experience Dart graduated from Walden in 2005 with a Ph.D. in Health Services, specializing in Community Health Promotion and Education. He credits Walden for enabling him to apply his personal hypotheses and theories about public health administration to real-life situations. “I could see the positive outcomes from what I learned,” says Dart. “I formed a close network with fellow students, and it was a great learning experience all the way around.”
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